e-mail, john tower. >> i have fran writes up wondering if you've been tipping that bartender. he looks like he's been up for four days straight. >> talking about our man, mike. he's been busy over the last week because this crowd's thirst for booze at 5:00 in the morning unquenchable.

mike, the busiest man in showbiz. "morning joe" starts right now. ♪ times have changed and so have i. i'm no longer just a candidate. i'm the president. [ applause ] and that means i know what it means to send young americans into battle, for i've held in my arms the mothers and fathers of those who didn't return. i've shared the pain of families who have lost their homes in the frustration of workers who have lost their jobs. if the critics are right that i've made all my decisions based on polls, then i must not be very good at reading them. and while i'm very proud of what we've achieved together, i'm far

more mindful of my own failings, knowing exactly what lincoln meant when he said, i have been driven to my knees many times by the overwhelming conviction that i had no place else to go. [ applause ] but as i stand here tonight, i have never been more hopeful about america. not because i think i have all the answers, not because i'm naive about the magnitude of our challenges, i'm hopeful because of you. [ applause ] >> good morning. it is friday, september 7th, welcome to "morning joe." live one more time from the blackfinn saloon in north carolina. where last night the democratic national convention wrapped up

with president obama's acceptance speech. >> fired up, mika. >> ready to go. >> did you see that? >> ready to go. >> i saw that on "way too early." >> what was that? >> jennifer granholm. >> oh, my lord. >> that's all we should be talking about. >> lots to talk about. >> somebody needs to tell her she's from michigan and not from the valley pta. >> all right. >> what was that? >> then david -- >> okay. >> valley pta, come on baby. >> some amazing moments yesterday. >> what was that? >> what was that? >> you need to call your friend. >> with us on set, i'll call us her producer -- >> was she drinking over here first? >> maybe she was at the blackfinn. >> she could have been. >> sam stein tells me she tore the house down, lit the woods on fire. >> almost as much as obama. she had everyone going saying how many auto jobs that saved her state, the crowd was in her

hand. the hand gestures were amazing in their own right. you shouldn't speak. just -- >> i love it. >> goodness gracious. with us msnbc "time" magazine's senior political analyst mark halperin. national affairs editor for "new york" magazine and local analyst john heilemann and political editor and white house correspondent for "the huffington post," sam stein. >> let's get to it, on a scale of 1 to 73, how did the president do, mark? >> i thought it was surprising. he was -- couldn't say he was the best speaker even last night, let alone during the convention. it was a fine speech. i don't think it's going to cost him anything. it was surprising to me that there was nothing new in it in terms of policy and it did very little to position himself to, if he wins, i still think he has a better than 50% chance of winning -- >> especially after this week. >> to help govern the country. i think he will get a better bounce out of this than mitt romney did, but not because of his speech, but because of the other people who spoke. >> john, the guy that history

will remember as the great or ra tore of the democratic party won't be bill clinton, because like you said before and others have said, he's not a great orator, he's a great explainer, distills it down, how ironic the great orator of our time, you have to go back to reagan to find anybody better, was probably the victim of his own convention success because by the time he got up there, there wasn't the shock at him blowing you away. >> the expectations are incredibly high -- >> he did a good job. >> you think about the last two democratic conventions, 2004, launched him into the political stratosphere. 2008, he accepts the nomination and becomes the first african-american nominee in history, 80,000 people in invesco field. how do you top those things. then you get the pyrotechnics of bill clinton and his wife, michele obama. >> michele was unbelievable. >> and joe biden. >> john kerry. >> john kerry did well, biden did well, clinton was incredible, michele obama was

incredible. but you know, it -- >> it's a high bar to clear for the guy. >> and also, though, if you want to compare it to tampa, i mean, obviously so much -- >> they had to hold everyone back. >> so much better than everybody at tampa. we're not going to even -- but as far as substance goes, i agree. >> beautiful. >> he said nothing, but he said nothing so much better than mitt romney said nothing. >> yeah. >> which i was talking -- >> that's it. >> let's be clear, we were talking about how high the bar was for obama. talk about mitt romney, it's a low bar for mitt romney to clear that bar. he was somewhere in between those things. i thought the first two-thirds of the speech, and many people have said this, it did feel like a state of the union speech. little bit of a laundry list and very -- not just as mark said, not only did he say nothing new, he said nothing bold and he said nothing very specific. you know, one of the great virtues of clinton's speech, he was so deep in the weeds with the details which what is voters

in this time want. >> they want that stuff. >> and we said that, the republicans didn't do anything in tampa specifically. and how fascinating, willie, that the president, if you look at his first two years, they were really two huge monumental battles. you had health care and you had the stimulus. he didn't mention the stimulus, didn't mention it. >> yeah. >> and he really didn't mention health care. the only time he touched on health care, was when he said we're going to save medicare by trying to make health care cost less. didn't talk about medicare. i mean details, details. this was a pep rally. and again, we just have to say this for our viewers at home, if this is the first time we had ever seen barack obama our mouths would all be like dropped to the floor and we'd say this guy is the future of the democratic party. >> well, he talked about creating a million new manufacturing jobs, hiring more teachers, he talked kind of obliquely about embracing

deficit reduction. what he meant by that we don't know. is that simpson-bowles, form of simpson-bowles. gets to the point john and i were talking about, how -- the obama campaign has sort of masterfully made this not about as much as a sitting president and his record, but a choice between he and mitt romney. the choice has been what mitt romney will or won't do for the country -- >> how overshadowed does mitt romney look, how flat, dull, does the tampa convention look right now. i mean we were ten minutes in to the president's speech last night, again, a speech not deep on substance, a speech with no surprises, and i just sat there thinking, game, set, match. the democrats have trounced the republicans in these convention wars. >> what do you think that means for the election? is that just they had a great week, put on a great show. leave an impact on the race? >> you know, it depends on what happens at the debates. but sam stein, for all of those

who were saying before mitt romney's convention, and there were a lot saying this before romney's convention, romney needs to have a great introduction to america in his convention. he's blown that chance. those people are now going to have to say, romney has to have a great series of debate performances. >> so poorly produced. >> they blew it. republicans blew it. and in part, it has to do with the fact that we nominated a candidate, and you felt it going into tampa, that our base wasn't excited about. >> i think that's right. this speech, this is not my thought, i forget who originated it, but this speech was someone who i think feels confident that he can win the presidency. very safe speech. >> so confident. >> i want to say, you know, in retrospect, the omission in the romney speech of any mention of afghanistan and the troops -- >> oh, my god. >> we'll go there. >> why did he do it? it was a huge gaping hole they offered to the president. how many times did we hear about the assassination of osama bin laden last night and each time

it seemed like it sort of stung a little more for mitt romney. i think you're right. mitt romney remains a very flawed candidate with respect to his base and the people in that audience last night, they were going to go for barack obama no matter what. you had the sheer optics that you didn't have for mitt romney. >> we had said americans need to learn more about mitt romney, ann romney said he was a great guy but never really put the meat on the bones with the details and the stories. you know, this convention at least for me, my great takeaway is, that barack obama connected himself with the american dream, for the first time. because there are a lot of people, myself included, that wondered, does he really get it? does he really understand it? because you know, he went to elite prep schools in hawaii, he went to harvard, he went to chicago, he went -- you know, does -- michele obama, the first night, when she started talking about her dad, i mean, gosh, her dad, what an incredible man.

her mom, how incredible. they are the american dream. you heard joe biden last night, and president obama, starting his speech talking about his grand dad going off to fight in world war ii in patton's army while his grand mom stayed home and worked in the factories for the arsenal of democracy, he -- i don't know why they haven't connected all those dots before, but this week, they connected it and that is a powerful, powerful message for america. >> they have. it was worth reminding people of those stories. we knew those stories about michele obama and about the president's background, but it was time to remind everybody where they came from, given the situation that this country is in now, and how to connect it. and they did that very well. one more thing, and we'll get to the president commenting on mitt romney, mitt romney not mentioning our troops, is so significant, given the fact that people see him as so removed from the people who actually do

the work in this country, do the work for this country, who have to work hard on very, very little means, it was a huge mistake on his part. >> i know i'm being very tough, mark halperin, on mitt romney's aides, on mitt romney's advisors. >> they don't know how to help him. >> on ann romney's speech writers. >> my god. >> on the entire team, you know, from beginning to end, the obama team outperformed the romney team. and if a candidate doesn't talk about afghanistan, while we're at war and americans are getting shot by their supposed allies. >> going back for repeat tours of duty. >> you know what, that's the staff's fault. that's the speech writers' fault. you know, that's when somebody comes in the room and they go, governor -- >> no-brainer. >> americans are in a hot war, they are dying every week, you've got to mention them in the speech. nobody did that for mitt romney. he was really, really not helped

by his own staff. >> there's no question in terms of the programming and the flow of each evening and flowing from one night to another, no question the democrats did better. i want to make it clear the president's speech was more than fine. it -- i think it helped accomplish two of the three major goals of the convention, helped by others. one is to remind people that they like barack obama, that there's a certain magic to him in terms of inspiring the country. two, to help define mitt romney. they want to make this as we've said along, a choice election, but not in a way people say is mean spirited. the missing piece from the president and from others again, was not enough i thought in terms of saying what happens if i win, what will i do if i win. >> there is, mika, based on last night's speech, the same with mitt romney, there's just absolutely no mandate for either one of these guys who wins. you go back, if anybody says that these convention speeches are only about the pageantry of it all, go back and read ronald reagan's 1980 acceptance speech in detroit. it is one most of the

ideological speeches i've ever read in my life. >> i would argue this country's waiting for a mandate for some sort of galvanizing -- >> reagan said you elect me, this is what i'm going to do and i'm going to radically alter the course of the government that began growing in 1933. >> so here is president obama last night, phrasing our troops in the war zone while mocking mitt romney's recent foreign policy tour. >> we are forever in debt to a generation who sacrifice has made this country safer and more respected. we will never forget you. and so long as i'm commander in chief, we will sustain the strongest military the world has ever known. when you take off the uniform, we will serve you as well as you've served us, because no one who fights for this country should have to fight for a job or a roof over their heads or the care that they need when they come home. [ applause ]

>> my opponent and his running mate are new to foreign policy. [ applause ] but -- from all that we've seen and heard they want to take us back to an error of blustering and blundering that cost america so dearly. after all, you don't call russia our number one enemy, not al qaeda, russia, unless you're still stuck in a cold war mind warp. you might not be ready for diplomacy with beijing if you can't visit the olympics without insulting our closest ally. >> the guy was relaxed -- >> that's -- >> he was relaxed. he does a great fred army sted. >> he does. it's one of the most extraordinary things and we've talked about this the last three and a half years, you saw it in that speech and all week long, the idea that the democratic

party now owns foreign policy, owns the -- they're the strong party. >> yeah. >> they're the daddy party. those have been for all of our lifetimes those have been republican issues where democrats have had to scramble to figure out a way to just be at par with republicans and these guys walk around here three days and are just puffing out their chests and they are the tough guys in the room. >> what do republicans -- what's the rhetorical when they don't even bring it up at the convention? >> nothing to say. >> isn't that why mitt romney he didn't bring it up, he conceded this is an issue, afghanistan and others, that president obama owns. he says it last night, i killed osama bin laden, i ended the war in iraq, i'm going to end the war in afghanistan for you. and just superficially in that arena, see the democratic hall, they're the ones waving the flags, chanting "usa" something a republican hall thas typicall owned. >> you think he should have saluted the troops, mitt romney, at least.

>> no doubt about it. the big problem is -- the republicans look silly when they try to bash barack obama as weak on foreign policy. if barack obama -- as we've said around here, our biggest complaint about barack obama over the past three, four years is, he tripled the number of troops in afghanistan. he made promises on gitmo he didn't follow through on. he's launching drone attacks into one country offs here in the where we're not even engaged in war. i mean, we are now engaged in borderless wars all over the world. and so the republicans look silly when they say he's not strong enough. and apparently, sam, nobody has the guts to say, bring the troops home from afghanistan. >> there's a faction of the republican party that would cheer that. >> oh -- >> i'm one of them. >> you know. >> george will and myself. >> the problem is, if romney were to say something like that at the convention and equally passionate half the republican party would just tear him to

shreds. want to jump back on your mandate thing, because i thought that was a valid point. >> i appreciate that, sam. >> stop validation. >> from a guy -- >> there was two points they were trying to make i thought last night. one is we have to preserve what we accomplished and that they mean we've done this hard work let's not go back now. you have to figure out how to be a changed candidate when you're the president. that was eegs easy in 2008 i have a mandate to change washington, that's what they are trying to hit now. how do we become the change candidate while the sitting president and it's a difficult balance to have. >> you know, have you guys seen the new i guess it's new ad by the rnc that shows what he said in 2008 and what he said in 2012? boy, it's identical. it's pretty -- it's a crazy video. >> we'll pull that up. >> ought to pull that up. there are a lot of stuff he said last night was recycled from past speeches and i guess the question is, mika, as we move forward, does he know how to

work within the framework in washington, d.c., against an opponent that wants to beat him as clinton did -- >> i think that's the fundamental question he's going to have to address. >> how to get things done over the next four years. >> i think the debates will be more interesting in terms of substance because they'll have to go after each other. before the president we heard from vice president joe biden who gave a rousing speech. >> he's great. >> highlighting the rescue of the auto industry offering a stern warning to the republican ticket about the direction of the nation. >> when i look back on the president's decision i think of another son of another automobile man, mitt romney. what i don't understand, what i don't think he understood, i don't think he understood that saving the automobile worker, saving the industry, what it meant to all of america, not just auto workers, i think he saw it the bain way. i mean this sincerely. i think he saw it in terms of

balance sheets and writeoffs. folks, the bain way may bring your firm the highest profits, but it's not the way to lead our country from the highest office. [ applause ] >> all rightp. >> a great speech. >> the vice president did well. john kerry, we'll play some of that later, had a pretty blistering attack on mitt romney's foreign policy. >> did very well. >> one of the best moments from either convention came when former congresswoman gabby giffords, who is still recovering from the shooting in tucson in january of last year, appeared on stage to a standing ovation. holding the hand of her friend, congresswoman debar wasserman-schultz, she led the audience, with "the pledge of allegiance." >> i pledge allegiance, to the flag of the united states of america, and to the republic, for which it stands, one nation,

under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. [ applause ] >> boy, she just looked great, didn't she? >> she did. you can imagine, the amount of therapy and hard work. >> oh. >> that she's had to endure to climb back from being -- she was literally shot in the head. >> in the head at close range. >> close blank range. that was a pretty pivotal time in the nation's conversation about where we stand and the tone of things. >> it was. >> what a symbol of hope she is. that was incredible. >> it was a very moving moment. all right. coming up he nominated his dad, last night for another term as vice president, bo biden, the attorney general of delaware,

joins us ahead here on "morning joe." former pennsylvania governor ed rendell, nbc news political director chuck todd and later maryland governor martin o'malley. up next mike allen is here with the politico playbook. but first, bill karins with a check on the weekend forecast. >> good morning to you, mika. let me help get everyone out the door this morning. the worst weather in the entire country is rolling out of iowa and into northern illinois. it should soon be arriving in chicago. keep that in mind if you have flights in and out of chicago this morning. these thunderstorms are rolling in. right now they're out by the quad cities in davenport, iowa. this is good. this is a dry area of the country, but it is going to cause problems out there for you as you go throughout your morning. the big story this weekend, fall. we have a cold front coming down from the northern plains and that's going to cool things off. we're going to watch significantly cooler temperatures. it is going to be a beautiful weekend in the middle of the country. finally we're going to see some cooler air for texas, but not today. look at dallas, what a slap in the face. 105 degrees today. still very warm and humid all

through the middle of the country and into the east. but that changes on saturday. look at the beautiful forecast from kansas city, dallas, 87 is going to feel like winter for you and on the east coast, saturday's a little unsettled with the thunderstorms, but then by sunday it all heads off the coast. should be a beautiful end of the weekend for just about everyone out there across the country. this is the weekend we've been waiting for, the first taste of fall. new york city, you have to wait until sunday. you're watching "morning joe" we're brewed by starbucks. hey. hey eddie. i brought your stuff. you don't have to do this. yes i do. i want you to keep this. it'd be weird. take care. you too.

[ sighs ] so how did it go? he's upset. [ male announcer ] spend less time at gas stations. with best in class fuel economy. it's our most innovative altima ever. ♪ to meet the needs of my growing business. but how am i going to fund it? and i have to find a way to manage my cash flow better. [ female announcer ] our wells fargo bankers are here to listen, offer guidance and provide you with options tailored to your business. we've loaned more money to small businesses than any other bank for ten years running. so come talk to us to see how we can help. wells fargo. together we'll go far. mom's smartphone... dad's tablet... or lauren's smartphone... at&t has a plan built

to help make families' lives easier. introducing at&t mobile share. one plan lets you share data on up to 10 devices with unlimited talk and text. add a tablet for only $10 per month. the more data you share, the more you save. at&t.

after more than ten years without justice for thousands of americans murdered on 9/11, after mitt romney said it would

be naive to go into pakistan to pursue the terrorists, it took president obama, against the advice of many, to give that order and finally rid this earth of osama bin laden. [ applause ] ask osama bin laden if he is better off now than he was four years ago. he's even blurted out the preposterous notion that russia is our number one geopolitical foe. folks, sarah palin said she could see russia from alaska. mitt romney talks like he's only seen russia by watching "rocky iv." >> okay. >> wow. >> that's one way of digging at someone. yeah. welcome back to "morning joe." time now for politico, willie. >> it is. look ease who's here, mike allen

with a look at the politico playbook. >> good morning. this is a special queen city in person edition of happy friday. >> happy friday. >> the weekend begins. so mike, you were listening to our conversation in the first segment talking about one of the mistakes the romney campaign made about not talking about the troops or war in afghanistan. you say there's another weakness that obama campaign is beginning to exploit. >> that's right. another way that as you say, mitt romney blew it. that is, that we saw obama last night laying the argument, these guys are bumbling amateurs, they don't know what to do, they're not ready. we heard him say climate change is not a hoax. i'm not going to turn medicare into a voucher. the clip we saw of him saying they're new when it comes to foreign policy. he mentioned the troops at least three times just to rub it. >> yeah. >> you can see in these debates which now are probably mitt romney's only chance to

recoverp. he talked about how he had the vp, the convention, but he's totally blown. all he has is debates, specifically debate one. you can see president obama standing there and saying, hes a just not ready. how do you not look president l presidential. they've been looking for ways to disqualify mitt romney and turns out mitt romney may have done it himse himself. >> the joke about london with the smirk on his face, that was far more effective than raising your voice and poking your finger there. can't even go to the olympics with our closest ally without offending them. >> right. >> and then john kerry talked about how the trip overseas is more of a blooper reel than a foreign trip. they hammered him on foreign policy for sure. you're looking at politico about what was not in president obama's speech. we talked about kind of low on specifics. what didn't he talk about? >> yeah. you mentioned earlier, barely a mention of the -- of health care. no mention of the stimulus. in fact, this has been a little bit the auto bailout convention.

like almost all the accomplishments that president obama mentions were in the first couple months. said very little about the last couple years. >> and they were very excited. jennifer granholm particularly very excited about the auto bailout. >> i think she might have been very good. we were a little taken aback at the video, i think she's fantastic. >> they love her in the hall. >> she had fun. good for her. >> we'll play that clip. ask you about charlie crist, because some people in the republican party, most people in the republican party, calling him a turn foe for even showing up here. how did he do last night? was it worth it for him to come here. >> we talked about how he came off wesly. teeing up to become a governor in florida for 2014. democrats have wanted a real republican like john warner to speak at their convention and when they planned out the convention that was a big part of it. i think charlie crist is who they wound up as their

consolation prize, their former republican, and here trying to talk about reagan didn't work. >> don't voters in florida see this as pure political op tunism. >> charlie crist is leading the governor in polls right now. if he can get past other democrats in the primary, the democrats don't have a deep bench in florida, you could see charlie crist being elected as a democratic governor. i mean rick scott i guess rick's approval ratings are still -- >> ticked up a bit. >> in the mid 30s, high 30s, maybe low 40s, but charlie -- you know, charlie was very unpopular in his own party for good reasons. but independents liked him and democrats liked him. this guy could be governor of florida as a democrat. especially if rick scott's numbers don't improve. >> also interesting as republican governor he bashed the affordable care act on president obama and now here he was in support of it. >> it's important to remember as we look at the tv rating

patterns of last two weeks, every indication is that republicans watched the republican convention, democrats watch the democrat convention. both campaigns tell me they have very little hope that much of this leaked through to your independent or swing voters. >> really? >> fascinating. >> we'll see shortly. mike allen with a look at the playbook. >> thanks so much. >> great two weeks. >> happy friday. >> coming up the nationals having a great season. last night, a little brawl between the good and the bad. we'll show you next in sports. [ female announcer ] you can learn a lot about a minivan

from tests like this. ♪ and even more from real families who use them like this. we think there's another test to consider. it's based on one simple question. after living with your van, would you buy it again? more town & country owners do than the owners of any other minivan. it's called the test of ownership, and to us, it's the most important test there is.

from your eyes, causing irritation and dryness. really? [ male announcer ] revive your eyes with visine®. only visine® has hydroblend to soothe, restore and protect eyes for up to 10 hours of comfort. aaaahhh... [ male announcer ] visine® with hydroblend. for up to 10 hours of comfort. aaaahhh... we believe small things can make a big difference.e,

like how a little oil from here can be such a big thing in an old friend's life. we discovered that by blending enhanced botanical oils into our food, we can help brighten an old dog's mind so he's up to his old tricks. it's just one way purina one is making the world a better place... one pet at a time. discover vibrant maturity and more at purinaone.com.

welcome back to the blackfinn saloon. pause for sports here. after losing a ten-game lead over a month and a half the yankees began a four-game series with the orioles in baltimore. the yankees had a one game lead on the orioles coming into the game. and the o's strike early. matt weeder's three-run home run in the first inning, it's 4-0

orioles already. yankees were getting blown out but rallied in the eighth scoring five runs capped by ichiro's two run single, tied the game at six. but in the bottom half of the frame, adam jones at the plate hits a bomb into the left field seats. orioles hit six home runs off yankee pitching. baltimore goes on to win 10-6. yankees and o's again tied atop the al east, three more games against each other this weekend. nationals going for the sweep over the cubs. things get ugly. couple coaches start jawing at each other. the benches, bull pens clear in washington and nothing happens. a lot of standing around, people looking at each other, talking. no punches thrown. but still a little bad blood left over. bryce harper going to take exception to a pitch way inside, takes a step toward the mound, this time a little more serious, benches and bull pens come out, get together, this is a little better, still not what we're looking for. >> pushing and shoving. >> pushing. >> i want to see a punch.

>> like one of those brawls in the taiwanese parliament, they don't really hit oech other, just kind of push and smack. >> broken up quickly. nats player, two cubs tossed. nationals win 9-2. >> you kind of want to see that zimmer moment, right? >> yeah. >> i don't want to see that. >> where pedro, you know, where a guy in his 20s pushes down a guy in his 70s. >> by his head too. >> by his head. just awesome. >> speaking of the red sox character, beating up old men. >> all class. >> the cubs, nats 35 games below .500. >> let's look at theo epstein's two teams that he created. >> well -- >> time to revisit that legacy. >> how about that legacy. >> two world series, come on. let's not forget that. >> i'll tell you what, he handed the red sox a miserable club for the next three, four, five, six years. we're going to be paying for theo's mistakes for a long time. >> how are you feeling watching the yankees right now sh.

>> it's painful. i'm not watching, just checking the box scores. >> it's like the sox last year. >> the thing is with two wild card teams they'll probably get in the playoffs. >> let's not forget the oriole, great story. >> yeah. >> and the a's are playing well too. >> the a's. >> money ball three or something. >> speaking of the a's, did you see this pitcher, brandon mccarthy, it's an ugly piece of video to watch but he underwent successful surgery on his skull after taking this line drive on wednesday. >> i bar lines one off mccarthy, ricochets to donaldson. they get the out. mccarthy is down. a's said yesterday mccarthy is stable, alert in the critical care unit of a bay area hospital after a two-hour surgery to repair a skull fracture and a brain contusion. >> the team didn't give a timetable for when he might come back to action. >> oh, my god. >> the headline is he is okay. >> oh. >> thank goodness. >> wow.

>> one other thing to report, college football this weekend, the huge game at evanston illinois, vanderbilt on the reed taking on northwestern in the nerd bowl. >> seriously. >> my cats are going to crush -- >> i'm going to the game. want to come? >> oh, yeah. >> sat bowl two. >> spread in college football not to be believed, florida state is favored over savannah state by 70.5 points. 70.5. the largest spread in the history of college football. savannah state lost last weekend to oklahoma state 84-0. >> i'll take that. >> savannah state -- >> 70 points that's ridiculous. >> i think it's [ inaudible ] i think fsu wins 77-3. >> what's scary, ohio state took off the gas, i mean oklahoma state stepped off the gas in the second half. could have scored over 100 points. ed rendell joins us. >> all right. >> keep it on "morning joe."

[ "human" by the human league playing ] humans. we mean well, but we're imperfect creatures living in a beautifully imperfect world. it's amazing we've made it this far. maybe it's because when one of us messes up, someone else comes along to help out. that's the thing about humans. when things are at their worst, we're at our best. see how at libertymutual.com. liberty mutual insurance -- responsibility. what's your policy?

less expensive option than a traditional lawyer? at legalzoom you get personalized services for your family and your business that's 100% guaranteed. so go to legalzoom.com today for personalized, affordable legal protection. boring. boring. [ jack ] after lauren broke up with me, i went to the citi private pass page and decided to be...not boring. that's how i met marilyn... giada... really good. yes! [ jack ] ...and alicia. ♪ this girl is on fire [ male announcer ] use any citi card to get the benefits of private pass. more concerts, more events, more experiences. [ jack ] hey, who's boring now?

[ male announcer ] get more access with the citi card. [ crowd cheering, mouse clicks ]

[ applause ] welcome back to "morning joe." with us now -- >> by the way, so there's --

>> yeah. >> is he in that picture. >> talking with everybody. what a line outside. >> look at the long line. couple nights ago having dinner and john heilemann warns me, phil is the president of msnbc, i walked across from the convention center bill griffin turning cartwheels, happy man, phil was elated because a couple nights ago, i guess, msnbc came in first place. >> he should be. >> over cnn -- >> joyful. >> fox, i think abc. >> wow. >> two nights in a row. >> phil. >> two nights in a row. i tell you, they were -- >> you know what it was. >> they were doubling and tripling their cable capacity. phil is obviously -- you know what, good for phil. >> justifiably. >> happy for phil. finally listened to our e-mails. >> he did. >> exactly. >> time for the must read -- ed rendell is here. >> i don't watch any cable prime

time. i watch "honey boo boo". >> yes. i watch it wearing a tiara. >> okay. >> ed rendell is here. >> i've seen the clips. very talented young woman. >> she is a talented young lady. the future of america. >> i saw it -- >> for better or worse. >> i don't even know what to say except that it sums up everything i have to say about america and what we need to do. ed, hi. >> "honey boo boo" on the learning channel. >> have you seen that? >> "honey boo boo" no, missed it. >> bears a strike resemblance -- >> no, you don't. >> that is not a compliment. >> we're going to talk about "the new york times," david brooks his piece called character not owe dasty.

i should point out that mitt romney missed talking about major things important to this country as well. >> that plays -- governor, we have said -- >> you could write the same thing. >> the president really said nothing last night but said nothing so much better than what mitt romney said. >> at least he saluted our troops. >> when mitt romney said nothing in tampa. >> i think the president had two choices last night. one was to lay out a detailed economic plan to try to get those independent voters and

move them and say this is what the next four years are going to look like and i have a plan that can move us. i think that could have been effective. but i think this speech was targeted at the enthusiasm gap. 80% of republicans enthusiastic about voting, 62% of democrats. i sit with my delegation for the speech even when i was chairman i went down to the pennsylvania delegation to hear and see how people reacted. that speech made the rank and file democrats. >> oh, yeah. >> understand why we are democrats in the first place. it was about education, it was about opportunity, it was about citizenship, it was about how america's better when we're -- when we do it together. >> there has been an enthusiasm gap in these two conventions but the enthusiasm gap has gone the other way. it was the republicans that seemed to be lacking the enthusiasm we saw here. >> i think these three days if you're a democrat watching at home, these three days i think changed the dynamic a lot. you just couldn't be

unenthusiastic about michele, bill clinton an incredible performance and the president. >> so, mark, the ugliest campaigns are usually the campaigns about nothing. that's why primary campaigns get so nasty and personal. mika has called this a seinfeld election and if you look at tthe president's speech and mitt romney's speech, as david brooks said, it's just about nothing. incremental changes here, but nobody talking about big ideas, not really giving details on tax reform, on entitlement reform, on ending the war. you can go down the entire list. and so i guess this relegates us to a couple more months of nasty 30-second ads. >> you heard a lot of lines in both nominee sfeechs clear -- speeches clearly to target specific groups. two serious guys running for president, huge challenges, fiscal cliff coming unlike any president has ever faced and

we're having a campaign based mostly on negative attacks and we've said before, the debates not only are critical to the political matter but that's the only forum we're going to have. there are open questions and don't know the answer, will either candidates give a major policy address between now and the election. >> i doubt it. i'm sorry, go ahead. >> the same thing each campaign would be able to accomplish in a convention to say who's going to be there for you, who's going to remember you as we endure hard times, even though the democratic convention was far more glamorous, far more sort of rock and roll, far better produced, i think they did a better job connecting with people who are hurting. >> well, and their speakers were better, they performed better. i mean, you can talk about music, not only did the band play better, but the songs that the band was singing were so much better. michele obama, just as good of a performance as i've ever seen from a first lady. bill clinton, seriously, put that up there with the great speeches of the past 25 years.

and barack obama, again, he didn't break any new ground, he's just a great speaker. >> i think all the speeches, the other thing about them that you missed in tampa, was these speeches here were all michele obama's speech, bill clinton's speech, all the speeches about barack obama. there was no -- not much discussion about democrats trying to advance themselves for 2016 or, you know, that was a lot of the subtext in tampa was about that kind of thing. the one place where i think there's a little concern for president obama which is in the david brooks piece, he's used to being the guy of change. he was the change candidate and he's not that anymore. he's basically offering the same things as the last four years. that's fine except for the fact that 65% of the country thinks we're on the wrong track. something there, whether romney can exploit that or not. not so far. a little something, a nugget that's going to be a problem for president obama having not put forward anything new and big. >> somebody tweeted last night this speech basically said you know what, by the middle of next

decade, things will be kind of good. that's basically what happened, ed. but, you know, at the end of the day, mitt romney, i mean, we've got to underline it again, they had a chance to take off, they didn't take off. and in large part, didn't you always feel that the republican convention, we talked about it, that you were looking at the speakers and it was as if they were dutifully reading their lines but you knew they were reading off the teleprompter. you didn't feel that with clinton, with michele obama. >> definitely not granholm. >> and granholm -- dear lord. >> i think mark makes a great point. what's left for the romney campaign is the debates and i love the structure of it. i think it's the first debate. six issues, 15 minutes each on an issue. >> wow. >> you've got to come up with some details there. >> all right. governor rendell, stay with us. up next the speech from former michigan governor jennifer granholm that's still bouncing off the convention walls. >> when america needed it most, who got us rolling again on the road to recovery?

we'll be right back. my name is adam frucci and i'm the editor of splitsider.com.

i love new technology, so when i heard that american express and twitter were teaming up, i was pretty interested. turns out you just sync your american express card securely to your twitter account, tweet specific hashtags, and you'll get offers on things you love.

this totally changes the way i think about membership. saving money on the things you want. to me, that's the membership effect. nice boots!

now, sure, sure, mitt romney loves our lakes and our trees. he loves our cars so much they even have their own elevator.

in romney's world, the cars get the elevator and the workers get the shaft. sure he's made a lot of money. good for him. good for him. or should i say, good for him. president obama, with the auto rescue -- you know he saved more than 1 million american jobs, but it wasn't just michigan, hey, hey, hey, in florida, 35,000 jobs, in ohio, 150,000 jobs. autos are back, manufacturing is rebounding! why? [ applause ] you know what i'm saying. and on your ballot the "d" is

for drive forward, and the "r" is for reverse in this election. we are driving forward, not back. let's re-elect our great president, barack obama! [ applause ] >> wow. ed rendell. >> you know former governor granholm. >> gettysburg. martin luther king's march on washington. >> i loved it. >> jennifer granholm's inexplicable departure from her personality. she's reserved, right? >> i came in with jennifer. we were in the class of '02. she's always dignified, always deserved, always has strong opinions. >> was she drunk last night? >> she was feeling it. >> i guarantee you this morning, jennifer sees that, she's going to say, i did that? >> no. jennifer -- >> they loved it. >> they loved it. >> she's canadian. >> she's -- >> when has a canadian ever done that before? >> expresses herself and you all

cringe. please. we'll be back. >> we'll be right back.

dnnks hi i hamybdomen..itwo wati tht icovn,erhamybdomen..itwo

s oron r.bohiloncerhamybdomen..itwo to meet the needs of my growing business. but how am i going to fund it? and i have to find a way to manage my cash flow better. [ female announcer ] our wells fargo bankers are here to listen, offer guidance and provide you with options tailored to your business. we've loaned more money to small businesses than any other bank for ten years running. so come talk to us to see how we can help. wells fargo. together we'll go far.

our friends down in tampa, at the republican convention were more than happy to talk about everything they think is wrong with america. but they didn't have much to say about how they'd make it right.

they want your vote, but they don't want you to know their plan. and that's because all they had to offer is the same prescriptions they've had for the last 30 years. have a surplus? try a tax cut. deficit too high. try another. feel a cold coming on? take two tax cuts, roll back some regulations and call us in the morning. >> all right. welcome back to "morning joe." we're live for a final day at the blackfinn saloon in charlotte, north carolina. come on in, pull up a chair, mark halperin, former governor ed rendell and "the huffington post's" sam stein are still with us. joining us host of pbs's "need to know" and columnist for yahoo! news jeff greenfield. >> great to have you here. the president was making fun, mocking the romney campaign for

not being specific last night. how specific was the president? >> vaguely, specifically vague. >> specifically vague into it's a new term i coined after watching the acceptance speeches. in looking at this the one thing that kept occurring to me, we talked about this year, instant theater criticism speeches, the people who worked on the speech, the campaign, they know what's in the speech. they're not going to accept in spin doctrine, claim this is a blueprint. the question is why this speech with this tone? why the nonsoaring rhetoric. the answer is two things, tactically i think they're ahead and don't want to mess things up. the other reason, who is this guy now, he's the president. the biggest applause line was i'm the president which should not have come as a revelation to anybody. but the point is i've been here, scarred, stumbled a few times, and i know the world. that's why i thought it was interesting his biggest jab at romney was about you're a naive

person when you go abroad. i think he is surrounding himself in presidentialty to say, i can do this job, i've learned how. i'm not giving you hope and change. you gave me change. fascinating twist of what happened in '08. i'm not giving you hope. you're giving me hope. >> ed rendell, the convention as a whole looking back, really did the job they intended to do. they sent the message they can connect with everybody out there, through michele obama's and everybody's speeches. it had an overall air of confidence because everybody was good. >> confidence and pride. i thought speakers like deval patrick, pride in what we stand for, pride in what we're trying to accomplish for the country, i thought the mood was great in the building and i thought if you watched it you had to be a little bit excited about the future of the drun i. i -- country. i thought almost everybody was great. >> what we're going to be doing is alex, are you going to -- what? about three more seconds. great. we're going to actually join the "today" show and broaden the

conversation. but yes, joe, in terms of production, you've been saying all along that this convention is better. do you think it has an impact on voters out there who are potentially going to change their mind? >> it certainly has an impact on the democratic base. if i'm sitting at home and watch those. this is a 2004 election. this is what karl rove did when george w. bush was below 50% like the president. and you've got to get your people out. if i'm a democrat and i'm watching this convention, i'm excited. >> yeah. >> especially in contrast to what the republicans put together. >> i think joe is so right. you'll know on election night in blue districts. >> we'll know. >> if we exceeded the vote. >> let's go live to the "today" show. here is savannah talking with joe. >> to new hampshire this morning, they do a rally together there, then iowa, a rally together there, ohio for biden, florida for the president. mitt romney will also be in new hampshire today. >> chuck todd, thank you so much. joe scarborough, the host of

"morning joe" on msnbc n charlotte this morning as well. good morning to you. >> good morning. i'm in charlotte, and i'm in a bar. >> situation normal, nothing is different for you, joe. but let's talk about that speech last night. obviously barack obama landed on the national political speech with the big speech in 2004. four years ago we saw him in denver speaking to throngs. yesterday we saw a more straightforward approach, didn't see the swelling oratory. given the democrats' task of inspiring enthusiasm among their voters was that the right call and did he deliver? >> well, the president certainly delivered an exciting people inside the convention hall. he delivered in exciting his base. did we see anything new from barack obama last night? did he give any proposals that would allow him to have a mandate moving forward after getting elected? no. as we were saying on the set beforehand, jeff greenfield was saying on this set, they weren't swinging for the fences. michele obama, bill clinton, set this president up well and they

believe they're going to beat mitt romney this fall, so they decided they didn't have to take a lot of chances. the president didn't take a lot of chances. but he did what he needed to do because this is going to be an election, much like 2004, where you had a president who's below 50%, george w. bush, and they inspired their base. i think if you just look at it through that lens, then the president did exactly what he needed to do last night. >> you were, obviously, in charlotte all week, you were in tampa the week before. pound for pound, speech for speech, night for night, make a call, who had the better convention and who had the most ride oggen it? >> >> oh, good lord, if we're going pound for pound, round for round, this wasn't ali versus frazier this was mohammed ali versus chuck. you know, you could tell from the first night when michele obama came up there and gave a remarkable speech, one of the best speeches i've heard from the first lady, that this was going to be a convention that was focused on explaining why

barack obama made a difference, between michele obama and bill clinton, joe biden gave a great speech last night, they all hit home runs. they all hit it out of the park. where you had a republican convention that was trying to figure out how to love mitt romney. it really was -- it was problematic for a convention? tampa that just -- in tampa that wasn't excited about their nominee. you felt that in tampa. here in charlotte from the first day you felt the love for their nominee. >> joe scarborough in a bar in charlotte, i'm going to pretend i got that chuck weber reference, thank you so much. >> look that up. thank you, sa van. >> governor rendell you get the reference. >> sure. he was a british stiff who every once in a while would pull out and beat up -- >> i think ali called him the great white dough. >> that's why i say they exuded overall a message of confidence, because everyone was good and

they allowed everybody to completely flourish and you almost got the feeling in tampa, that they were tamping down some of their speakers so they couldn't outshine mitt romney. >> they had a great overarching theme to the whole convention which started with a biographical piece for michele obama, then bill clinton started defending what happened in the last four years and then obama getting up there and saying okay, i did x, y and z but now i want to look forward, do a, b, and c. i thought that was a good procession of speeches and themes. >> fantastic. >> jeff, speaking of ali, very confident guy, used to drive his opponents crazy. i remember talking to steve schmidt four years ago during the campaign, and steve schmidt was driven crazy by the fact they don't respect us. they don't think we can win. you go on and on. they have no respect for our ability, you know, in -- that's how the obama campaign feels about romney. and there was a -- you know, i think there was a moment a

couple weeks ago where i started to sense they might have been in for a fight, but a blown convention in tampa, brought them in to charlotte and they've got that ali flair. they are cocky and they don't believe that mitt romney has a chance of beating him and you saw it in the speeches when they were out there. >> and you know, i talked to a couple odemocrats here who have a contrary view of this. not that the convention wasn't successful but keep coming back to one point, the fundamentals. look at where the country is, what the numbers are, not as a predictive element but no incumbent president has ever won with a series of these numbers, not that he can't. >> the numbers being a third of the country -- >> consumer confidence, i don't believe you can plug these numbers in and forget the campaign. >> all of them together look at the history nobody has ever won this way. i do think they came up to an interesting answer with we built it, we make it possible.

they found a way to say most people in this country, 120 million people work for other people, but in terms of the fundamentals of this, if they're th cocky the debates could matter and challengers do well because they're on the same stage, huge money advantage and it ain't that good. >> but still, mark halperin, things could get interesting when they actually have to talk about something and that will be during the debates because this was, of course, a pep rally for both sides and one did better than the other, but when they actually have to interact, does mitt romney have what it takes to maybe make it a real conversation? >> people in terms of the debates people talk about him as an experienced debater because he's done all these republican debates and the primary seasons last time and 2008 and now. those are multi candidate debates. one on one is a different thing. he's nod had recent experience in that and barack obama is a very good debater. his debate prep -- >> you really think so? i think barack obama, i think that's the weakest part of his playbook. he's a great speaker, he's great

when he gets that microphone and talks on the stage off the top of his head. but i'll tell you what, hillary clinton beat him in 16 of 17 debates. he and mccain put us all to sleep four years ago. he's not -- you know, it's almost like he's too smart to boil it all down to 90 seconds or thinks he's too smart. >> not a flawless debater. on the one on one debates with secretary clinton and john mccain, when he prepares he's very good. based on my reporting, although governor romney is hunkered down in vermont doing debate prep, he's got a lot to learn about this. doing your first presidential debate at the general election he'll feel more pressure than barack obama. >> barack obama's prep is very organized. >> after being critical, ed rendell, of mitt romney's convention and mitt romney's speech, i've got to say in this one area, these sort of debates are custom built for a guy like mitt romney. because it's so confined. i'm going to be asked this question, i have this long to answer it, it's very -- it's

very mechanical. it's not free willing. and we saw during the debates in the republican primary, mitt romney doing pretty darn well. >> he was very disciplined and very much on message. for our side i love the fact that the first debate is six topics for 15 minutes. you can't be as tailored and disciplined in that type of debate with follow-up questions on a topic. i think jeff is right. a danger for us, the democrats, if we're overconfident. given the state of -- >> do you think the president's team is pretty confident? >> i think they are, but there are enough of us out there to keep reminding us. >> you know who is overconfident are the big donors, despite the schmoozing that happened this week they're not giving to the democratic super pacs. >> why not? >> the theory is it's in hand and if it looks like it's in trouble they can jump in with a million dollar check the next day. i don't think it works that way. >> i will say, the one thing that romney definitely has going for him, jeff greenfield, is

30-second spots. i remember living in washington back in 2008, and i would see one barack obama ad -- i was watching a redskins football game, and i said, my god, he's outspending ten to one, "the washington post" reported that he was doing 200 ads, barack obama, for every one ad john mccain was putting up and he moved numbers on the tax issue. he moved numbers in the swing states. >> that's -- >> that may happen to obama this year from romney's attacks. >> north carolina was a 14,000 vote state and getting to the point where they were doing individual ads, you know, that would just put on tv and say, hi, mika. i understand you're having trouble with the lawn collection. we would like to help you. >> would you? >> just had so much money. >> and the obama people, some don't get it. i was on a show and asked me is pennsylvania in the bag? i said, of course, not. it's too early. anything can happen. i got a call from chicago saying how could you say that? i said you guys are crazy. you want me to tell pennsylvania

voters it's over? that's a great way to get them to turn out to the polls. >> so another moving part, joe, is going to happen at 8:30 eastern time in the middle of the show and that's the jobs numbers coming out. they have had a great week, but some bad numbers could that -- >> you know what -- >> change the narrative a bit. >> it gives the romney campaign talking points on sunday. but these things are -- i mean this campaign is a campaign of big impressions and no bad number today is going to overshadow what independents who stumbled across bill clinton a couple of nights ago, as he went on and on during their local news or what michele obama said, nothing's going to overshadow that. anybody who thinks it does is just -- doesn't understand politics. >> the romney campaign is out with about 15 new ads today. taking advantage of the general election cash edge they're going to have. and it's going to be interesting to see if those move numbers because in normal campaigns ads move numbers. the biggest thing that might have happened this whole week in

charlotte, was the decision of rahm emanuel to leave the president's campaign as one of the cochairs and to start to raise money for the super pac, the president's super pac. if rahm can raise money the way he has since the early '90s for the super pac that cash advantage could be neutralized. >> they don't work de together d. >> we had a report, we know somebody that runs a -- yeah, i won't say the industry, rahm emanuel walked in last week, and said -- shook hands and said i need $15 million. >> i got to try that. >> and you know what, that's how rahm emanuel works. so we'll see. but let's talk really quickly about these 30-second ads again. because mitt romney had a horrible month in july. you had todd akin, perhaps july and august, and all these bad things helping. and nbc news/"wall street journal" poll that came out showed him going down in every category, except battleground

states. and he was actually closing the gap in battleground states. jeff greenfield, how can mitt romney be doing so terribly across america, one mistake after another, and yet, in this one area where it matters, battleground states his numbers go up? >> let me -- >> 30-second ads. >> the economy, stupid. i don't mean that personally. i think that fundamentally this condition, has been with us now four years, people still don't see what they need to see. and one more quick thing, 60 minutes this sunday doing the woodward book? >> i don't think -- i think it's on another network. >> well, sorry about that. "60 minutes" is going to have -- watched by probably as many people as watched the convention a very, very critical look at the obama white house that's in woodward's new book. i don't know if that's going to make a difference but the argument i'm the seasoned professional will take a hit and

i think that may be part of the factor. i just think, joe, you're right on target on this. for all of this, this election where it counts, is still very close and that's not good news for an incumbent. >> the 30-second ads mark halperin, all those swing states that mitt romney is running, has an impact. we don't see it in manhattan, don't see it in washington, you don't see it in a lot of the other state s but in ohio, in nevada, colorado where it counts in the swing states, you're seeing 30-second ads every day. >> and look, for all the good that the democrats had in charlotte, the fact that the president still is ahead in most places that matter, you've got a campaign that's going to be very well funded, ads being made by a group that has done effective ads and the economic conditions, whatever today's unemployment number says. i think that the romney campaign looks at discussions that suggest this is over, or it's going to be hard for him to win or must ace the debates may not be true. the fundamentals of more money

on 30-second ads, economic conditions and the fact that the battleground states as you said are closer than the national -- >> these ads, i mean we were talking about this, they have so much money they could play a run in the state and force the obama campaign to respond. interesting thing about the ads they put them out in eight states not on those list of states, pennsylvania, michigan, and wisconsin see if that changes going forward. obama campaign has money too. they could spend $30 million more every month than they take in and still end up even. they're putting their chips, though, on the ground game. they think they've organized a get out the vote operation that is totally historic in terms of its reach. they think it's far and away better than 2008 when they only had four or five -- >> amazing ground back then. >> yeah. but that was the same argument we had in 2010 when there was an ad disparity for democrats and it didn't work. >> you will know by 8:15 on election night who won. take blue districts that obama did well in '08 and tell me the percentage in '08, the

percentage that turned out in 12. if it's close, obama wins. if it's better, obama wins in a landslide. if it's lower, he's in trouble. >> okay. ed rendell thank you so much. >> by the way, you were mischievous trying to get republicans to waste money in pennsylvania again. it is fool's gold. i've said it before. i'll say it again. republicans, you do not listen to governor rendell. you cannot win pennsylvania. spend your money more wisely. >> yes, you can. >> jeff greenfield stay with us. up next, dell's attorney general, the son of the vice president, joe biden joins us. right here on set. keep it here on "morning joe."

[ "human" by the human league playing ] humans. we mean well, but we're imperfect creatures living in a beautifully imperfect world. it's amazing we've made it this far. maybe it's because when one of us messes up, someone else comes along to help out. that's the thing about humans. when things are at their worst, we're at our best. see how at libertymutual.com. liberty mutual insurance -- responsibility. what's your policy? ♪ [ multiple sounds making melodic tune ] ♪ [ male announcer ] at northrop grumman, every innovation, every solution, comes together for a single purpose --

to make the world a safer place. that's the value of performance. northrop grumman.

it's my great honor to place into nomination, for the office of vice president of the united states, my father, my hero, joe biden. [ applause ] >> i move to suspend the rolls and nominate by acclamation joe biden as the democratic vice presidential candidate. [ applause ] >> welcome back to "morning joe." look at this bar.

it is full. we got great next guest with us, attorney general from delaware, bo biden, last night had the honor, you saw that, of nominating his father joe biden for a second term as vice president. that was moving. >> you know, mika, so sad that joe biden. >> yeah. >> like a rocky stoic he can't let himself go and enjoy that remarkable moment. >> the lights on there, he got to enjoy it, he knew he was on camera there. >> i know. >> we love him and he is such a real guy. obviously moved to tears by seeing you put his name in the nomination. what a great thrill for any father. i loved your mom talking and your dad starting the speech, just talking about what a great, great difference she's made in his life. >> and my life and my brother's life. i torgts to mention my -- forget to mention my brother last

night. i'm starting mentioning my brother. my only hiccup last night. i said he's been there for my sister and i and been there for my brother, i left out my brother. >> wasn't there for your brother. >> what was it like seeing your dad up there? >> he gave a great speech, talked about from the ringside and the partnership he and barack have had, about what an incredible president barack obama has been. he's seen it up close and personal and lived it. and laid out what -- why and what he's done and going to do in the next four years. >> you know, we were talking about this, hope you don't mind me bringing it up again, about the moment that obviously changed your life, your dad's life was the car accident 40 years ago. you guys, your family, you don't use it, don't invoke it, cheaplcheap -- but you did last night, is it difficult to talk about that. >> no -- yes, and no to be honest. the reality is every one of us here and everyone in this room

has had some tragedy in their life. some tragedy. we either -- tragedies make you stronger or break families apart. and i've been a blessed, blessed son. had my aunt move in with me, grandmother raise me, new mom five years later. family that enveloped my brother and i with love and i've been a lucky man. >> we have these beautiful stories, tender moments as the screen shows and then jeff greenfield over here, know what he was doing last night? >> what's is ththat? >> mental image. >> he's on the floor and he and dave are talking and brian swizer is telling them how to castrate a cow. >> really? >> maybe you could explain. >> so -- >> no don't explain how to do that. >> nice contrast. >> dave berry and i bond every four years because he finds politics almost as funny as i do. >> right. >> he's desperately looking for a column in a bar run by another network. governor of montana who is a

manic depressive except only manic, we begin with how did you get elected? he says the people were drinking. then dave barry looking for a column says, did you ever adjust, fix cows, whereupon i'm not making this up, the goverr of montana gets on the floor of the bar and shows dave berry step by step how this is done and for me, next to a couple of speeches, that was the highlight of my convention. >> i'm not sure how we veered off as bhadsly as we -- badly as we did. >> no. i'm just saying, you know, it's diverse. >> it is very diverse. >> why did we do this? >> i'm not sure. you guys carry on your own show and mark halperin and i will talk. joe biden, we always talk about how much we love him and in part we love him, because he's so real. and because sometimes he'll make a verbal gaffe, but you always know that he's got a good heart

and willie was talking about the accident that shaped his life, i think one of the most powerful things i've seen is when joe biden was talking to military families who lost their loved ones, and unlike any other politician, he could say, i know how you feel. and he -- at times like that, joe biden, more than anybody else, can be the comforter in chief. >> part of why i think the attorney general's father is such a great politician and public servant, that's not the only life experience he's had that informs how he thinks about policy. he's in the senate for so long, leader on national security, leader on justice issues, law enforcement issues. he spent so much time with lawsuit families who have lost someone and that's a length of experience running for president, teaches you one thing. living that life as you did growing up and then in the senate, work on policy and being

animated by his life experiences that's what makes him not unique but special in american polit politics. >> full dimensional what in joe biden, we love him on the show, but i'll say that he has these gaffes, the latest one, was played over and over again, but i -- little biased because, obviously, of my world view but i don't think there's a lot of people who sit around this table or on the other side of the aisles who really think his heart is in the wrong place. >> you know, mika, the other side of the aisle, we're in north carolina. >> yeah. >> one of my dad's best friends in the united states senate y know this joe, was jesse holmes. my dad was close and mark knows this, they got things done, paying back to the u.n., chemical test ban treaty, another friend of his strom thurman south of here. relationships matter in this business as you know better than anybody. >> right. >> and that's what you see what they've been able to do for 36 years. >> your dad does do that well. what about president obama and can your father help him, do you

think is that where, perhaps, there's room for improvement over the next four years if they have the chance? >> you've heard what the president said about what he's learned and, you know, they're an incredible team and they're building relationships around the world in this country across the aisle and i think you've seen them set it up for the last three and a half years and they're going to be doing much more of the same over the next four years. it's essential we re-elect him, from . >> vice president biden struck an optimistic tone last night and said something that, you know, i've said once or twice myself, you're a fool if you bet against the united states of america. you'll lose that bet every time. >> one more thing, our republican opponents are just dead wrong about, america is not in decline! america is not in decline! i've got news for governor

romney, and congressman ryan, gentlemen, never, ever, it never makes sense, it's never been a good bet, to bet against the american people! never. my fellow americans, america is coming back. and we're not going back. and we have no intention of downsizing the american dream. >> wow. >> jeff greenfield -- >> you know, jeff greenfield your and vi grown up, mark halperin, all of us have grown up watching republicans talk about the negativism, first of all, and secondly it's always been republican conventions that have broke out in chants of "usa." the roles were reversed last night. >> most startling moment for me of whole campaign.

1984 gene kir patrick electrifies republicans by talking about the san francisco democrats who blame america first. four years later bush ridicules dukakis because he thinks america is just north country. i don't think romney and ryan will say we think america is in decline but watching them try to turn that against the republica republicans i thought was one of the more striking moments. >> republicans just talked about what what's wrong with america, that's what we republicans have always said, about the san francisco democrats, they love to tell you what's wrong with america, look at this great country of ours and always a glass half empty. last night again, i thought vice president biden, barack obama and the democrats have put this convention on reversed that attack. >> you couple it with the talk about veterans and national security, i mean they did not walk through the hall with osama bin laden's head on a pipe, but they all but did it. >> everything but.

>> they mentioned it over and over and that advantage as we discussed earlier, generations of republican presidential candidates have had the advantage on national security. the president feels strongly he has a great record, the vice president does do and they talked about it. politics sure but they feel they can run on that record and neutralize the image of the democratic party as weak. >> it really is stunning, isn't it, that the republicans didn't bring up afghanistan, didn't -- here we've got a guy who obviously knows something about fighting in wars, served in wars, stunning that the republicans didn't even mention it. >> we've asked a lot of people, people who would know what's the explanation for that and i haven't heard a good explanation other than it was a huge blunder and mistake, hard to conceive you couldn't put perhaps the easiest thing in politics let's support the troops. for you and your father to bring up last night and your mother as well, supporting the troops not just in the war zone but when they come home as we know we're going to have millions of guys when come back who need care for the next 20, 30 years that to me is as important as anything

talked about at the convention. >> multigenerational commitment that the president understands increasing veteran. we fits more than any president in 30 years. compare that to the romney/ryan budget, $11 billion cut, i believe his math on this, don't believe his math on his mara on there times. >> there you go. >> but believe his math on the budget, $11 billion cut in year one to veterans benefits at a time when you have been against, spoken out from the day one. >> right. >> and he wants to cut the v.a. by $11 billion. 85% of which goes to the 2.3 million people that have served in uniform over the last ten years. >> as you know, certainly a lot better than i know because you served with these guys and these women, because of the advances in troop protection, because of the kevlar vests, we have so many american troops coming home with so many more physical challenges. >> ptsd.

>> traumatic brain injuries, people with scars we don't know about. >> double amputees, triple amputees and this is going to be a challenge for the united states over the next generation. it's going to be a challenge to these american heros. >> and to our economy. >> for the rest of their lives. >> until their last breath. you know this in your heart and head. seated next to a family who has a son in the navy and a cousin going off to afghanistan on tuesday, eric snyder, you know, they didn't mention any of this. >> right. >> in tampa is remarkable to me. that's why i'm confident the about the no matter what they did in tampa, i mean it's just -- it was stunning. it was stunning. >> mr. attorney general, thank you so much. >> thank you. >> you've been good to my dad. >> we love your dad. >> he's the best. >> remains a no attack joe zone. somebody else going to afghanistan, willie, somebody else, who won't be be followed by tmz into the war zone. >> wow. >> did you hear this story? >> no. >> they sent prince harry to

afghanistan. >> they're cold! >> crossed the line. >> that family is cold. >> punishment for the vegas es ska paid, he's going to afghanistan to fly an apache helicopter for four months. >> dude f you're in the house of windsor, you better keep your clothes on in vegas. they're going to be sending you to afghanistan. >> that's tough. >> that's harsh. that is harsh. thank you so much. congratulations. >> thank you. >> we'll see you -- >> for you, your mom, family, your brother. give another shout out. >> i love you hunter. he's my best friend. what i'm doing right now i would do with my brother's help. couldn't do without him. i messed up last night. >> i love you guys. thanks so much. >> still ahead former white house adviser van jones along with a rising star in the party, bacari sellers. up next, bill karins will have your weekend forecast. keep it right here on "morning joe." [ male announcer ] what can you experience in a seat?

inspiration. great power. iconic design. exhilarating performance. [ man ] ...once again has created le mans history... [ male announcer ] and once in a great while... all of the above. take your seat in the incomparable audi a8. ♪

take your seat in the incomparable audi a8. you expect something $40in return. billionaire oil tycoons charles and david koch and their special- interest friends are spending $400 million to buy this year's elections and advance their agenda. what's their payback? politicians who will pass laws that benefit special interests, but hurt the middle class; more tax cuts for the rich, eliminate the minimum wage,

big cuts to our schools, but big subsidies for oil companies, learn what you can do at... for their "destination wedding." double miles you can "actually" use. but with those single mile travel cards... [ bridesmaid ] blacked out... but i'm a bridesmaid. oh! "x" marks the spot she'll never sit. but i bought a dress! a toast... ...to the capital one venture card. fly any airline, any flight, anytime. double miles you can actually use. what a coincidence? what's in your wallet? [ all screaming ] watch the elbows ladies.

welcome back to "morning joe." i'm meteorologist bill karins. quick weather update. how beautiful is this picture from jacksonville beach, florida, this morning. large waves for all areas of the east coast this weekend because of hurricane lesley.

dangers of rip currents too. that's just a picture perfect morning on the beaches of florida. this weekend i'm happy to say favorable changes for many of us in the middle to eastern half of the country. some cooler air, drier air is going to replace this warm, humid air we've been dealing with. in dallas, today is going to be a ridiculously hot 105 degrees. record heat. you are going to love saturday and sunday with temperatures in the 80s compared to the summer you've had this is a great extended forecast. and let me show you other areas too. we're looking at drastic improvements, chicago highs in the low 70s and even into next week looks gorgeous. washington, d.c., hot summer too and we're going to watch your temperatures cooling off after thunderstorms on saturday. there's a reward coming for everyone by the tail end of the weekend on the east coast. today, though, showers and thunderstorms are plaguing us, the chicago area probably has the worst area in the country from chicago to des moines southward to central illinois, thunderstorms for your morning

commute. otherwise, though, tell you what, though, middle of the country to eastern half of the nation, this is the first taste of fall. we all deserve that with the hot summer we've seen. coming up next on "morning joe," former white house adviser van jones, also south carolina state congressman bakari sellers. have a great weekend, everyone. stay tuned, more "morning joe" live from charlotte coming up. welcome aboard! [ chuckles ] ♪ [ honk! ] ♪ [ honk! ] ♪ [ honk! ] ♪ [ male announcer ] now you'll know when to stop. [ honk! ]

the all-new nissan altima with easy fill tire alert. [ honk! ] it's our most innovative altima ever. nissan. innovation that excites. ♪ the economy needs manufacturing. machines, tools, people making stuff. companies have to invest in making things. infrastructure, construction, production. we need it now more than ever. chevron's putting more than $8 billion dollars back in the u.s. economy this year. in pipes, cement, steel, jobs, energy. we need to get the wheels turning. i'm proud of that. making real things... for real. ...that make a real difference. ♪

hey, bro. or engaging. conversations help us learn and grow. at wells fargo, we believe you can never underestimate the power of a conversation. it's this exchange of ideas that helps you move ahead with confidence. so when the conversation turns to your financial goals... turn to us. if you need anything else, let me know. [ female announcer ] wells fargo. together we'll go far.

these are the steps that we must take. >> there are plenty of steps we

can take. >> right now. >> right now. >> to start getting back our economy on track. >> if we are going to deal with dependence on foreign oil we'll recruit an army of new teachers. >> i want to recruit an army of new teachers. make college affordable. make college more affordable. and repair our crumbling roads and bridges. we've got crumbling roads and bridges. tonight more americans are out of work. we still got friends out there, family, who are looking for work. >> wow. all right. that was part of the new web ad from the republican national be committee entitled, we've heard it all before. and joining us now from the white house special adviser van jones, he's the author of the book "rebuild the dream" also with us democratic state representative from south carolina, bakari sellers. very good to have you both. >> van, that was a pretty -- you were smiling in that ad. >> funny.

>> but kind of true. >> he had the best line. >> you can't do that with mitt romney. it will be two different people. >> that's a good comeback. >> all right. both of you, though, how do we get beyond the platitudes, he's repeating a lot of things he said four years ago and the country is not necessarily doing very well. >> we can talk about the speech, first of all i want to say, listen, the convention was convincing this is a different democratic party. this is a muscular democratic party. this party is not afraid of the culture wars. full embrace of lesbian gay equality of immigrants, women. not afraid of the culture wars. not afraid of any other war. yes, we can, usa, usa, somebody said osama bin laden's head on a pike, first of all, this is -- >> that really does sound like the democratic party embraced by the aclu. >> but think about the branding now of the democratic party. on the one hand compassionate, that big joe biden heart, but

also competitive, willing to be combative. this is a party prepared to govern in the new century and you have to give the democratic party credit, this convention came in here, people were discouraged, feeling low, this was a revival as party credit. this convention came in, people were discouraged. this was a revival as much anything else. >> you were in the convention hall last night. talk about the reaction to the president. >> it was amazing. i'm only 27 years old, so i haven't seen much, but this is a new era of challenges. this is so complex and to your point, mika, we've come a long way, but we have yet a ways to go. it's a long journey and we don't want to turn on the president now. >> i think the point you and jeff made last block about how they were able to change the narrative about betting on america was another brilliant thing that happened. >> i've never seen anything like what i saw from the the republicans. it was three days, four days of just america sucks, america

sucks, america sucks, vote for me. i was like, where is reagan? >> i didn't see that. >> this is funny because in 2004, we always talk about 2004. george bush ran odds against john kerry saying he's so pessimistic about the future of america. he wants to talk about poor job creation. it's sort of a retread. you've been talking a lot for a while about how to reengage those obama supporters. what did this convention do to get those people off the couch? >> first of all, the progressive party, the base, there was a feeling, look, we brought this guy to the ball and didn't get a chance to dance with him. so you did have this discouragement. i think you saw that at the beginning of the convention. michelle obama came out there and it was a revival. >> wow. unbelievable. >> boom.

suddenly, people remembered, oh, yeah, we like this guy. so that's number one. number two, you know, the immigrant community has been beeped to butter. in places like arizona. you talk about a community having moms ripped away from babies. hey, this party embraced that pain. that gets this community back in the game. >> mark halperin! the president's not really expanding -- >> if he does win, he's going to win states he won last time. so what is it about the democratic party now, about barack obama now that keeping him from being able to compete in your state and others in the south? >> my state, it's just a weird place. we have the god father -- >> that's a good way to -- >> we have the godfather the tea party movement and jim demint. nikki hailey and we just have a tea party driven dialogue now

and what we're trying to do is educate our electorate. bring ourself into the 21st century and have raleigh in that triangle and bring new jobs and technology. i think once we get to that point, we can drive home that message. but one thing that i understood last night is that he gave some tangible ways he was going to make a better country. mitt romney said he was going to create 4 million jobs and nobody knows how. >> 12 million. >> i'm going to run for statewide office and say i'm going to create 1.7 million jobs and just leave it at that. >> how did the president say he was going to turn around the economy? >> a million manufacturing jobs. he said he's going to invest in our educational system. >> how? >> everything starts with education. >> so, we give more money for

education and create a million more new jobs? you know what? neither of these guys gave any specifics. >> but the president blew them away. in the convention hall. that didn't happen in tampa. >> by the way, before you attack your own state in the future, dude, talk to me first. >> attacking the tea party culture. >> say something. this is another great son of a great father. his father, one of the great civil rights lead es of all time suffered greatly and we are so proud to see this young man. >> he's got a great future. >> thank you so much. >> chuck todd straight ahead. re wt en

was y best f ert inken c sen boe. i doery ocai mee'. inmaheffe e oc a music: "make someone happy" ♪it's so important to make someone happy.♪ it's so important to make someone happy.♪ ♪make just one someone happy ♪and you will be happy too. my name is adam frucci and i'm the i love new technology,om. so when i heard that american express and twitter were teaming up, i was pretty interested. turns out you just sync your american express card securely to your twitter account, tweet specific hashtags,

and you'll get offers on things you love. this totally changes the way i think about membership. saving money on the things you want. to me, that's the membership effect. nice boots!

so, i'm working on a cistern intake valve, and the guy hands me a locknut wrench. no way! i'm like, what is this, a drainpipe slipknot? wherever your business takes you, nobody keeps you on the road

like progressive commercial auto. [ flo speaking japanese ] [ shouting in japanese ] we work wherever you work. now, that's progressive. call or click today. just outside the saloon here at the epicenter in charlotte and it is definitely the morning after. people are high tailing out of this town. if we come this way, it's not quite the the morning after . there are about 15,000 people last night out on the plaza watching our coverage on msnbc and now, everybody's gone home, except us. up next, chuck todd, charlie cook looks inside the numbers for us and jonathan capehart.

all that and more when we come back to charlotte on "morning joe." 4g lte has the fastest speeds.

so let's talk about coverage. based on this chart, who would you choose ? wow. you guys take a minute. verizon, hands down. i'm going to show you guys another chart. pretty obvious. i don't think color matters. pretty obvious. what's pretty obvious about it ? that verizon has the coverage. verizon. verizon. we're going to go to another chart. it doesn't really matter how you present it. it doesn't matter how you present it. verizon. more 4g lte coverage than all other networks combined. that bringing you better technology helps make you a better investor. with our revolutionary e-trade 360 dashboard you see exactly where your money is and what it's doing live. our e-trade pro platform offers powerful functionality that's still so usable you'll actually use it. and our mobile apps are the ultimate in wherever whenever investing.

no matter what kind of investor you are, you'll find the technology to help you become a better one at e-trade. i recognize that times have changed since i first spoke to this convention. times have change d and so have i. i'm no longer just a candidate. i'm the president.

>> welcome back to "morning joe." it's the top of the hour. there live once more from the black fin saloon in charlotte, north carolina and we got a great crowd. seriously. you all are really -- >> this hour, we're going to do something a little bit different. what we all know, the democratic convention easily trumped the republican convention. willie geist, zoo lander style. who wore it better? >> bow tie, gingham thing. >> it is amazing. gingham bow tie. pinstripe. look at the fashion played up.

versus. >> at the other end, the chuck todd, the jeans. >> stone washed jeans. >> with the 15-year-old white nikes. >> this guy is straight out of 1991. >> it works for me. only me. >> and only you. nobody else. please, nobody else, don't try it at home. you could be hurt. chuck, let's talk. fif first of all, 30,000. the republican convention versus the democratic. >> every hour of the democratic convention went on, the republican convention looked worse. it was sort of one of those, the republican convention was always fine. and remember every description of romney's speech, he talked to people involved, good for romney. you know, it was always graded on a curve and it's just interesting. like the convention, we all knew, said this on the "today"

show this morning. that was a convention everybody was forcing themselves to be no love with. >> national review, who has always been a bit more favorable towards mitt romney than some conservative readers would like, their screaming headline the next morning was he did enough. rich this week -- >> got through it. >> asked, thought a great question. did anybody cry at the republican convention? and you saw that here. so let's talk about barack obama now. the president last night, a lot of retread. >> good enough. >> but -- >> it's the same review. >> he really -- it felt like, i felt like -- he said democrats, except sometimes last night, it felt like he was pounding the

notes and it wasn't melodic all the time except for the end. >> and because it was all about getting -- >> for the record, personal stories were tear jerkers. when t real people who had been touched, their lives had been touched by mitt and ann romney, those were beautiful stories. >> it certainly took, this president is always going back to his campaign against hillary clinton. has always had trouble connecting with the the white working class voter, explaining to them, hey, i'm one of you. i understand the the american dream. i thought starting off with michelle obama's remarkable speech and connected those dots immediately. >> earlier, chuck and i were talking. there's a certain advantage about being the second convention where you could figure out what did the first side, what did the first convention miss? and we'll make sure we hit those nails really hard. sort of the afghanistan. a lot that did happen.

but i would agree with mika. to me on thursday, the republican convention, they hit a lot of singles, doubles and singles. they left a lot of men stranded on base, but boy, the hits were there that night. >> and we remember they were dealing with the hurricane in tampa and trying to rework the schedule and starting a day later. they had a lot of things going against them. >> but still, top to bottom, willie geist, there is no comparison. a lot of my friends who spoke at the republican convention, you looked at them and you knew they were reading the telepromter. michelle obama hit a 535 foot grand slam. bill clinton, the ball is still sailing out of the park. >> jennifer granholm, that was a wild one. >> i want to show part of that. >> look at her.

>> no idea she could do this. >> that was billy mark getting into a fight with george steinbrenner in 1977. then barack obama. guess what? barack obama's home run, it just went over the fence. but guess what, it was still a home run. >> and the choreography was superior to the republican convention. last night, a nice speech, then clint eastwood. then mitt romney. it threw off. here, you could see where there were going. michelle obama sets it up. we don't just feel your pain. we lived your pain. you can go gown down the line from bill clinton to the president. >> thursday night was a complete missed opportunity. the video of mitt romney of the two conventions was the most powerful thing i've seen of the two conventions. what they should have done is have marco rubio speak, then have him introduce that video,

then mitt romney walk on to the stage. the roof would have blown off. >> video for video, that romney video, that obama video wasn't that great. >> you're exactly right. that romney video, the people talking about mitt romney. unbelievable. >> just poorly produced. >> it was the one time that i actually felt some kind of connection to this guy. >> he's a good guy. >> and i thought that maybe the enthusiasm lacking in tampa from day one, maybe something would have been ginned up. when i got here to charlotte, i was like everyone else, the base is demoralized, not into this guy anymore and president obama anymore. that night, i was having dinner in the hotel. women came up to me, hi, i love "morning joe," so, are you a delegate? she said, no, i'm here for the first time as a major donor. in 2008, all i did was volunteer

and knock on doors, but my circumstances changed and now i was able to give and i'm so excited. from that moment on, i thought this is going to be a different convention. there's no enthusiasm in charlotte. >> what about the tampa vendors selling romney pair? >> there is a deep connection, i saw a bus, with a sign, don't disrespect our president. there's a defiance with people in charlotte. who have said you've treated our president badly for four years. you're kicking him around. we're here and we're going to stand shoulder to shoulder defending him. that was a attitude i picked up from the very beginning here and i didn't feel that in tampa

about mitt romney. >> it was beautifully played by the democrats. again, if you look back at tampa, i guess it's easier to look back. even the testimonials, even ann romney's speech, sorry, it was not written well. it did not help her at all. she did her best, but it was bad, okay? let's be the first to say it. it was like mitt romney is a good neighbor. he's a good man. a good neighbor. if you live in his neighborhood. okay? while, what? rig right? >> the thing is though i think that's unfair because the entire, the idea of these conventions is to personalize a candidate, talk about something that happened in their lives. >> and that's the best they could do. >> what do you mean? you and i both know that when we were looking at the people talking about mitt romney -- >> it was incredibly moving. >> you were crying, i was crying. everybody was crying. then they followed up with that

video, charlie cook, and for the first time in this campaign, i said, my god, this guy could win. and then they brought the most compelling character on stage and that was the chair next to clint eastwood and it all came to an end. >> this is kind of a metaphor for the campaign that we've seen, you know, there's some enormously talented people within the romney campaign, but pound for pound, the obama campaign has been a half step, full step, two acceptssteps ahe the television stuff. we're buying their ads. there's no romney advertising on local cable anywhere in america. so if you're watching law and order svu or something like that on usa, you're not going to see a single romney ad on there and that's where a lot of people are watching. >> yeah. >> they go for gross tonnage,

not sophisticated targeting. >> you didn't agree with what i just said, but with the obama presentati presentation, from michelle to the president, it is i came, and i think that was the difference. people really felt a connection. that was furthered by the tampa connection. >> you asked this question. who is running the romney campai campaign? >> it's not going well. he is the yin and yang. it is their one person pulling strings, but the messaging, he is the guy. his hand is in the speeches. in the television. his hand is in this stuff more than any other person. >> i want to follow up on what

charlie said because time and time again, mitt romney will gain an advantage and then step it. remember, i think it was after a huge florida win. or maybe it was after new hampshire. he made one of those statements. this has happened four, five times in the campaign where and jonathan is exactly right. the video they put together for mitt romney was the most -- and then they blew it. >> they get 90% of it right, but the 10% they get wrong is in a 51-49 election, cost you a lot. >> makes a big difference. >> what will people remember for eight, ten years from now? >> the chair. >> you know, it's easy in hindsight to criticize. on paper, clint eastwood walks out, gives a good speech, fires everybody up. they should have given him a script. >> what have he had just said, halftime's over. make my day and support mitt romney. >> would have gone crazy.

>> the crowd goes crazy. we all play that chrysler ad again, which was inspirational, patriotic and it gets plied in people's minds the romney. >> i was going to say the other problem with clint eastwood was that it stomped all over marco rubio. his people were very smart. they brought his prepared remarks, handed them out, but they didn't leave. they stayed to hear what we were talking about and unfortunately, we were talking about all the tweets that were going, coming up about the chair. and what the chair was saying and how people were reacting to the chair and not really listening to marco rubio's speech. i can't tell you what he talked about beyond some of the biographical things he said and that was a mistake. >> charlie, i'm getting a sense, of course so much can change over the next 60 days or so, that we're going to look at

possibly a win by president obama, coupled with republican gains in the house and republican gains in the senate. sort of a follow on to what happened in 2010. this is what you do though day-to-day, it's not in your gut. it's in your mind. what are you seeing right now? >> house republicans are almost certainly going to hang on. senate, this is going to be 50/50 give or take a seat or two, which for republicans is a pretty disappointment because they looks like they were going to get the senate back last time or a year and a half ago. now, maybe they do, but it's going to be 75,000 votes between majority nationwide. >> but by the way, this is the cost of nevada, this is the cost of not electing mike cassel, the republican. >> retiring and todd akin in missouri and then just coming up with some sort of second

stringers, but the bottom line on the president i think, if he wins, he will win despite the economy and because of his campaign. and if romney loses, it's the campaign. and in connecticut, you have linda mcmahan taking out once again, taking out a great moderate republican. i say great because, custom built for that state. >> yes, but watch that place because mcmahan has caught back up and that race is very close now. it's very close. >> wow. >> and to barack obama. 25 points. >> but democrats are -- that's sort of a bigger issue. democrats have to spend money to save a senate seat. that's big deal. takes money away. could make a difference. >> so, job numbers are coming up soon. >> 13 minutes. >> 13 minutes, we're going to

find out if the president's speech ages like fine wine. >> exactly. >> gets better and tastes better, or just throw out the batch and we start talking about something else. that's the danger here. if it's a really bad jobs report. the speech disappears almost the way sarah palin crushed his speech. remember, the announcement of sarah palin and nobody talked about his acceptance speech, but if it's a good jobs report, it will be interesting. that speech is pretty good. >> did you see anything in the speech last night? we were sort of doing some psychic reading. >> the president knows the number. >> he knew the number last night. he gets told the number -- >> more likely outcome is it's going to be a number that doesn't change anything. chuck's right. if it's over this, it's huge. if it's under that, it's huge and it's in between, it's nothing. >> speaking of sarah palin, you had one of the more interesting political quotes this morning on

way too early from former republican vice presidential nominee and i got to say, when i read it, it made my teeth hurt. i still don't understand what she was saying. >> john kerry was talking about mitt romney's understanding of russia. the biggest threat of the united states, our biggest enemy. he said sarah palin said she could see russia from alaska and he went on to make a joke about rocky 4. sarah palin said i i think he deminnished himself by even mentioning my name. >> and you know what? i don't really -- wow. why would somebody say that about themselves? >> she said that of herself. that was not the -- >> sarah palin now a critic of sarah palin? >> it's hard to parse out that one. >> i'm confused. >> self-reflective. >> i've got to see that. >> get back to the original

story. >> charlie cook, thank you so much. chuck and jonathan, stay with us. coming up as we just mentioned, we are minutes away from a very important august jobs report. we're going to bring in those numbers live as we get them. and next -- you're watching "morning joe." humans -- even when we cross our t's and dot our i's, we still run into problems. namely, other humans. which is why, at liberty mutual insurance, auto policies come with new car replacement

and accident forgiveness if you qualify. see what else comes standard at libertymutual.com. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy? there's natural gas under my town. it's a game changer. ♪ it means cleaner, cheaper american-made energy. but we've got to be careful how we get it. design the wells to be safe. thousands of jobs. use the most advanced technology to protect our water. billions in the economy. at chevron, if we can't do it right, we won't do it at all. we've got to think long term. we've got to think long term. ♪ we've got to think long term. we've got to think long term. a thing that helps you wbuy other things.hing. but plenty of companies do that. so we make something else. we help make life a little easier, more convenient,

more rewarding, more entertaining. year after year. it's the reason why we don't have customers. we have members. american express. welcome in.

the bar is still, it's still going here. joining us now, attorney general of kansas, kamala harris. she's going to shut the place down if we're not careful. very nice to have you on the show. >> so, do you think after the successful democratic convention, barack obama has a chance of carrying california, by 40 points? >> i think he has a chance. california loves barack obama. >> are there any republicans left in california? >> we've got a few. they're trying to hang on. there are a number of them trying to do good work and a couple who have left the republican party because they think there's too much gridlock. >> is there a republican perhaps in statewide office? >> we have no republicans in statewide office. >> isn't that amazing, chuck?

>> remember in '92, california was a swing state. >> the era of reagan. >> '88, george bush carried california. >> bush carried california in '88. it is one of the most, you know, and it all, you could trace it back to 1994. >> the republican party was a different party then! it won on that prop 187, it turned latino votes. >> one of your big issues is the foreclosure crisis. in california, there is a downward trend, but a long way to go. >> a long way to go and it does not only impact california and nevada was very hard hit. it's an issue that has impacted a lot of hard working, middle class american families and what we saw was the failure of -- lots of families who are on the

brink of losing their home and a lot of what we talked about in connection with the multistate, which resulted in for california, an $18 billion settlement was taking serious the fact that the vast majority of these homeowners want to pay to stay in their home. they're responsible people and we should see them. i think this is going to be a priority in terms of who we are talking with in this campaign and the election because these folks have felt and experienced the hardship that resulted in policies. >> the settlements you were discussing and also, the bureau of listed warrants set up, has it done enough really in the grand scheme of things to truly help people? some would argue it's a -- we're all talking about this, the next election, they're barely in their homes and on the street. >> the national settlement was a result at the beginning of this year. bringing $25 million to the country. each distributed to those

homeowners under water. it allows them to get principle reductions and refinance their homes. it's immediate relief. it's part of the solution. it's a huge issue and so, there are many aspects to it. in california, we actually passed the homeowner bill of rights to make permanent part of the reform that should take place. that system where homeowners try to pay to stay in their home and it has to be about a commitment by each of the states and the federal government to say we're not going to let those lax rules occur again so there's an enforcement. >> if you're watching at home in three minutes, we're going to have the jobs report coming up. stay tuned. that's going to have a big impact on how this convention's viewed. >> more broadly in california, in terms of foreclosures and jobs, that's working there? what's working there, what is the government doing to get people back to work? >> it's about keeping people in

their homes. we know when you don't have a roof over your head, a consistent place to sleep, a place to raise your family with security and stability, t hard to go out and get a job and keep a job. in california, we had 2.2 million mortgages that were under water. that's a lot of people. we had 1 million children associate associated with those homes foreclosed upon. we want to first stabilize those families and one of the first ways is to make sure they receive immediate relief so that we can prevent the foreclosures from hitting california. >> jonathan capehart in two minutes, the jobs report comes out. what are you looking at? >> whether it ticks down. even if it's .1%. it was 8.2% in july. 8.3. even 8.1. that's a good, or stays steady, that's a good thing, but also for the president. for the things i think chuck was talking about before, which is

if it's a bad number, if it ticks up by one point, .1% or a lot, it stomps all over the president's speech last night. but if it stays steady, we come out of charlotte still talking about the convention and the president's message and also, vice president biden, who was the one who say the president has laid the foundation for future success so that the improvement that they see in the numbers, of the president and vice president see in the numbers aren't being felt by the american people and that this is part of the process of getting the american people to feel the improvement that's actually there. >> and chuck, we have a jobs number right before the election in a country where only one out of three americans believe we're going on the right track. these job numbers really matter more this year than most years. >> that he can be. i am in the it's mostly baked in

unless you have something out of the norm. if it's surprisingly high or low, in the middle, people are just sort of saying well, the economy, they've made their judgment. and we're pretty locked in to barring something we don't know. >> and of course, the press release is already written on both sides. >> this is like the worst thing. >> i hate the press release thing. i can write them at this point. just let us do it. >> and of course, the jobs report numbers just moments away. the most frustrating thing about these job reports is the unemployment rate may go down and yet people say it's because people are discouraged the economy is so bad they stopped looking. it is one of the most inexact sciences i've ever seen and yet either of the two numbers, the number of the new jobs created, but there's also the overall macro unemployment number, which is really, it's more of a political number than it is an economic number. but i'll tell you what. in days like this, in election

days, it really does matter, mika. >> this is good news for the president. >> up 96,000. >> 96,000 new jobs and it has dropped from 8.3% to 8.1% -- tail wind of, that is a -- chuck todd, maybe a mixed bag, but tomorrow morning, all right -- guys. >> four more years! four more years! >> less than 100,000. >> what they're chanting is paul ryan's right. paul ryan's right. >> they're not. >> so, any way, it is a mixed bag, chuck, but on that, you're saying what's 100,000. but like i said, right before we

announced this thing, the screaming headline tomorrow morning, 8.1% from 8.3% and i don't care what people say. if this thing gets below 8%, it is a middle barrier and the president has huge tail winds. >> i haven't seen the release written last week from the romney campaign, but they will say this number of 96,000 jobs isn't enough to keep up with population growth. >> you learn all this now. we've been calling job report after job report. less than 100,000. if you had told me there would be a jobs report less than 100,000, it would have been bad news. >> but you know what? the swing voters, they're not sitting home. they're undecided because they're not connected to politics. they're not going well, it's gone from 8.3 to 8.1%, but that's only 96,000 non farm jobs and that means more americans are more discouraged than ever.

this is really a mixed bag macro economically good. every swing voter, but the thing is, seriously, you sit at home and you're reading the headlines and you see it drop to 8.1%. boom. you're going to the sports page going things are getting better. >> he doesn't address things, long-term unemployment, foreclosure. there is so much work to be done. so, it's nothing to party about, but it certainly does help obama. >> politically good news, right? >> absolutely, it's good news. put that in context with what the president said last night. he's got a plan. he has a plan to reduce our debt. he has a plan to create 1 million new jobs in manufacturing by 2016. he has a plan to increase exports by 2014. >> was it pixie dust he was going to use?

>> part of it, if you want to talk about what some might consider the mundane detail, he has talked about exactly a path to getting there, including supporting our community colge system. are recognizing that the american worker does not necessarily have the skills we need to compete. so he has a plan. he understands the system. it's not just a talking point. >> kamala harris, thank you. maryland governor and john harwood will be here to discuss jobs numbers for the economy, the impact and election. keep it rig here on morniht her joe." i don't spend money on gasoline. i don't have to use gas. i am probably going to the gas station about once a month. drive around town all the time doing errands

and never ever have to fill up gas in the city. i very rarely put gas in my chevy volt. last time i was at a gas station was about...i would say... two months ago. the last time i went to the gas station must have been about three months ago. i go to the gas station such a small amount that i forget how to put gas in my car. ♪

then don't get nickle and dimed by high cost investments and annoying account fees. at e-trade, our free easy-to-use online tools and experienced retirement specialists can help you build a personalized plan. and with our no annual fee iras and a wide range of low cost investments, you can execute the plan you want at a low cost. so meet with us, or go to etrade.com for a great retirement plan with low cost investments. ♪

back in the bar. >> welcome back to "morning joe." >> great to be here. seriously. how many drinks can one have in the course of three hours. let's ask the chair of the democratic governor's association and chief washington correspondent and writer for the "new york times," john harwood. >> john, the political number

comes out. great news for the president. 96,000 jobs, not so great. actually half of what a lot of people thought it was going to be, but got to say in the big picture, having the the rate go from 8.3 to 8.1 is a pretty good way to end this week. >> i guess that's true, but i'm kind of unimpressed with the report. once it was truly catastrophic in terms of the low jobs number, i think we baked into our expc k expectatio expectations. i would suspect the obama campaign would rather than -- than 96,000 and 8.1. i don't think it's going to be that consequential. >> because it's sort of a mixed bag and this leads to the question, governor, that you were asked a couple of days ago. are americans better off today than we were four years ago and you said, no. isn't it because it is such a mixed bag? >> it's dangerous for democrats

to go, yes, we're doing great, because americans aren't feeling it. >> yes, of course, we're doing better when america is creating jobs and we are creating jobs. no, we have not recovered all the jobs we lost in the bush recession and that's what i was saying the other day when they word spliced me and took my no and kept beating me over the head with it. we've now had 30 months in a row of positive private sector job growth. we could be making even more progress. hey! unlike the house republicans, we actually cheer here when there's new job growth that happens in our country. and so, look k we need to keep moving forward and that's what this convention's all about. >> do you feel abused by that word, slicing? >> when you're in the arena, sometimes, you get nicked by swords. >> sometimes it happens. any impact at all? just a hodgepodge. a mixed bag.

>> i'm with harwood on this. somehow, the rate got below 8%, you know, that would strike me. a lot of people would be able to point to that. if we got there before november, that will matter a little bit, but it is a mixed bag. the romney people are going to say weak job growth. obama people are going to point to the rate going down. >> no doubt than gene sperling would rather having jobs than 8.3%. we've spoke to him after past jobs reports where the number ticked down. this wasn't as strong. this is such a frustrating economy. for the white house. because you just never feel like you're gaining the traction you want to get here. >> good news never really is -- >> they're still trying to -- and not able to ignite. i agree with the romney campaign on one insight of thagts.

what matter is how people are really feeling in the real economy. you look at the number of jobs created in this month compared to the number of people out looking for work. that having been said, you know, 8.1 i think does matter. the news coverage, i think going from 8.3 to 8.1 is the trend. as president rag b found it, you're moving in the right direction. >> talk about the the number of jobs created. it's also the types of jobs. obviously, very important to build roads and bridges and to work on our infrastructure and we need it, but if you look at the types of people who are unemployed, people just graduated from college cannot find jobs. people who were working for 20, 30, 40 years who have been fired or laid off. who can't find jobs and they've given up at this point. these are huge lumps of people with nowhere to go. how is the president going to address that in his plans an was

he specific last night? >> first of all, i don't think they've given up. >> i know people who have given up. >> i know a lot of people who haven't given up. what this convention was all about was that we cannot give up on our country. we're the greatest job expanding nation ever created in the history of civilization. we are making process. mark was talking about, why doesn't it feel like it's happening faster while the private sector is getting better. the house republican, obstructionists and trickle down theorists are busy making sure this economy doesn't go forward faster. i think we should give the republican house some credit. they've done everything in their power to try to slow the recovery and where the public sector is concerned, they've been somewhat successful because with 30 months in a row of private sector job growth, we've seen about 21 of the last 22 months laying off firefighters, teachers and police because they're so bent.

>> that's governors. states dealing with, that is such an oversimplification that i can't let that pass. >> look at states in july. states that had democratic governors had twice the rate of job growth as states that have republican governors. you can't scribe to a theory that sayss we need less firefighters, teachers and police and you put them in unemployment lines and expect balanced job growth that we need to move forward as a country. >> that is such a gross oversimplification i'm not going to waste thoughts. john harwood, in my opinion, i respectfully say that to you, governor, and if i were in your position, i would say the same thing. so, john harwood, give us an overview. how did the president do last night? how did the democrats do last week? >> i think the president did well last night because just as romney's core challenge was to deal with how people viewed him,

try to get his favorablety numbers up, president obama's core challenge is dealing with the disappointment that so many people had and that's why he had this sort of it's a long road, it's not going to be easy. he was trying to reset those expeck tases. one republican strategist thought he moved the needle a little bit on that. talked to your colleague yesterday. they' their convention was better than ours. viewership's down. we'll see if that happens. my suspicion is that debates are going to be moved. >> i think quickly, we got to go. is this convention going to move numbers? >> i sure think so by the end of the day. >> you think so? >> obama strategist told me last night, we hope for one or two. maybe get three or four. >> what do you think, mark? >> four or five. >> you guys agree with with me. this is going to move the the needle. >> four. >> governor martin o'malley, john harwood. >> governor, thank you so much. great to see you. >> we'll be right back.

you expect something $40in return. billionaire oil tycoons charles and david koch and their special- interest friends are spending $400 million to buy this year's elections and advance their agenda. what's their payback? politicians who will pass laws that benefit special interests, but hurt the middle class; more tax cuts for the rich, eliminate the minimum wage,

big cuts to our schools, but big subsidies for oil companies, learn what you can do at... for fastidious librarian emily skinner, each day was fueled by thorough preparation for events to come. well somewhere along the way, emily went right on living. but you see, with the help of her raymond james financial advisor, she had planned for every eventuality. ...which meant she continued to have the means to live on... ...even at the ripe old age of 187. life well planned. see what a raymond james advisor can do for you. [ male announcer ] from our nation's networks... ♪ ...to our city streets... ♪ ...to skies around the world... ♪ ...northrop grumman's security solutions

are invisibly at work, protecting people's lives... [ soldier ] move out! [ male announcer ] ...without their even knowing it. that's the value of performance. northrop grumman. like a squirrel stashes nuts, you may be muddling through allergies. try zyrtec® liquid gels. nothing starts working faster than zyrtec® at relieving your allergy symptoms for 24 hours. zyrtec®. love the air. sven's home security gets the most rewards of any small business credit card! how does this thing work? oh, i like it! [ garth ] sven's small business earns 2% cash back on every purchase, every day! woo-hoo!!! so that's ten security gators, right? put them on my spark card! why settle for less? testing hot tar... great businesses deserve the most rewards! [ male announcer ] the spark business card from capital one. choose unlimited rewards with 2% cash back or double miles on every purchase, every day! what's in your wallet? here's your invoice.

he's even blurted out the notion that russia is is our number one foe. folks, sarah palin said she could see russia from alaska. mitt romney talks like he's only seen russia by watching rocky iv. >> i think he diminished himself by even mentioning my name. aren't these guys supposed to be these big whig elites that don't waste time on the little people like me, funny he even knows my name.

>> we wanted to play the sound bite. to make it look -- >> what's happened, what's going on in alaska? >> i don't know. >> from a person who has her own studio. she does know she ran for vice president of the united states. >> someone should tell her. >> we shall return. on every one of our cards there's a date.

a reminder... that before this date, we have to exceed expectations. we have to find new ways to help make life easier, more convenient and more rewarding. it's the reason why we don't have costumers. we have members. american express. welcome in.

a wonderful time both in tampa and here in charlotte. thank you, guys, so much. what a great audience you guys have been cht what have you learned today? >> i learned that apparently, there is pay yoet in alaska. >> i learned the white house will try to try to spin this, but that is not a good jobs number. >> we need more. >> jonathan. >> i've learned that sarah palin is complaining about elites from her in home studio in alaska. >> what have you learned? >> charlotte, north carolina loves joe, right? you love joe. i told you. >> maybe one or two. what what have you learned? >> that for jonathan capehart, the black fin is like cheers. everybody knows his name. >> what have you learned? >> that dumb tv guys like me

wear their uniform to a morning live shot in a bar, but smart candidates like martin o'malley take the tie off. >> well, mika, it has been a great week. this really has been i think the best convention any party's put on since ronald reagan 1980 goes to detroit and changes american politics. the democrats needed this badly. they had a depressed base. a lot of people have been grousing about barack obama for the past three, three and a half years. this week, they did a great job. mitt romney's team, they better serve their candidate better or they're going to have a tough fall. >> this has been a wonderful home away from home. the black fin, thank you, everybody. >> if it's way too early, willie, what time is it? >> we'll see you back in new york on monday. >> thank you, guys. humans -- even when we cross our t's and dot our i's,

we still run into problems. namely, other humans. which is why, at liberty mutual insurance, auto policies come with new car replacement and accident forgiveness if you qualify. see what else comes standard at libertymutual.com. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy? sven's home security gets the most rewards of any small business credit card! how does this thing work? oh, i like it! [ garth ] sven's small business earns 2% cash back on every purchase, every day! woo-hoo!!! so that's ten security gators, right? put them on my spark card! why settle for less? testing hot tar... great businesses deserve the most rewards! [ male announcer ] the spark business card from capital one. choose unlimited rewards with 2% cash back or double miles on every purchase, every day! what's in your wallet? here's your invoice.

i bought the car because of its efficiency.

i bought the car because i could eliminate gas from my budget. i don't spend money on gasoline. it's been 4,000 miles since my last trip to the gas station. it's pretty great. i get a bunch of kids waving at me... giving me the thumbs up. it's always a gratifying experience. it makes me feel good about my car. i absolutely love my chevy volt. ♪